Urban Geography – A critical introduction
[rating 5.0]
It might fairly be argued as to the place of an urban geography book in a site looking largely, but not exclusively, at books focussed on ecological and environmental science. Maybe there was a time when there was a real divide between ecology and urban geography but, given that most of us are now urban dwellers, or at least living under ideas of urbanism, this position become less tenable. This is even more so if we consider the development of recent geographical thought and tie it in with debates on topics like climate change. There is a move, especially in the last 20 years, to see urban not just as a place of buildings but of an increasingly contested space. From this, it follows that any idea of urban development is also contested as is the place of nature within the city. Given this, urban geography is of vital interest to all ecologists (especially if we are expecting our next generations to get out of their home, or off their devices, and actually engage with the natural environment).
Such arguments are made far simpler with this text. It is not the traditional view of urban design and morphology but is meant as a far more nuanced exploration of the idea of ‘urban. We start with a discussion of how researchers have viewed the idea of city from the notion of planning to its use as part of social interactions (or, more often, control). This gives way to the notion of the city not as buildings but as a place to accumulate capital and therefore power. Such ideas are only reinforced if we look at the development of the world (or global) city and the issues flowing from it. If global cities are about dominance on the world stage then there would be little left to say but they dominate in other ways from labour and the position of companies within cities to gender and the way in which cities quietly shape spaces according to pre-defined gender roles. The art, as the last chapter in this series suggests, is a question of power and the role of the city (and its burgeoning role outside the traditional confines to regions and beyond.
Although there is no sharp mark in the text, we have read about the way in which cities have been devised and planned, not just as buildings but as places of reproduction – of labour, class, gender and power. There is another side to the city and that is the way its inhabitants experience the place. They are not concerned in their day-to-day lives about how the city can be re-imagined as a place of control, they are concerned about the ideas of living. Take a simple case mentioned here. If you live in a uncontrolled space (i.e. slum!), how do you access toilet facilities? Re-cast that question if you are female. This seemingly simple act can be quite hazardous and beyond some at certain times. Put in this way, our experiences are critical to how we see the city. It’s not just how we see it by living in it but also how these concepts are marketed to others. How do you see your city and how do others view it? What are the icons sold to you and others as representations of your place?
Amidst all of this we should not forget the place of nature. Nature has a profound impact on the city in so many ways (look what happens when we move out!). The city is a physical environment to be exploited – walls are cliffs, roofs are eyries! Set against this, cities are areas of high pollution. Cities are places where nature is, to a certain extent, prescribed and proscribed by the forces that live there. Often, what we think of as nature is what we are allowed to see. So, how does this influence our understanding of ecology and the desire of people to experience nature and support nature conservation? The Kinder Scout trespass might be history, but its ideas are still relevant today.
Almost as a call for some sort of action, or at least conscious thought, the book finishes by looking at some alternative views of city life – through art and protest – and the way this shapes our lives.
This is one of the most fascinating texts on modern urban geographical thinking. It does not attempt to look at the more traditional side of land use and zoning and urban design/morphology. It its place we get a critical (in both senses of the word -analytical and political) examination of what it means to be urban and live in an urban place. It demands the reader take the familiar situation and subject it to an alternative gaze – to see that what is given might not actually be what is there. It suggests that the urban dweller can make something else in that space.
The value of this text lies in its simple demand that we question; that we look again and try to uncover what messages might be hidden from us either by design or ignorance. As such, it is a refreshing view of the city. It takes a new stance and expects the reader to do likewise. It helps its case that it is so well written. It’s doubtful that any academic text could be called a page-turner in the traditional sense of the word but there is a real dynamism of thinking that leads the reader on towards new places. It really should be seen as one of the must-buys of recent times. It deserves the widest readership.
